Tales To Astonish
by Marvel11611
Summary: There are many characters in the Marvel Universe, unfortunately, not all get their very own book. Say hello to Tales to Astonish, where said characters live in the 11611-verse. Issue 2: Thor and Iron Man! Thor faces off against Malekith the Accursed before we see the Mandarin enlighten Tony to a horrible truth.
1. Issue 1: The Hulk

**Cover: **Bruce Banner in a SHIELD uniform.

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**Marvel11611**

** Presents**

**Before Avengers**

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**2010\. **

**Rio Di Janeiro**

Bruce Banner couldn't believe this is where he ended up. He had two PhDs and a Masters degree yet one accident in an experiment and in just two months he's living on the streets in whatever country would take him. "_This was not the plan_." He thought wearily.

Bruce looked up at the passing people in the street. None of them had any idea who currently was sitting within five metres of them. If they did though, Bruce had a feeling they would not be within 500 metres of him. "_Definitely not the plan_."

**Christ The Redeemer. **

**Rio Di Janeiro**

Bruce had come up here every Saturday since he'd arrived in Brazil. This was a place where he could stare towards the horizon for hours and just relax. He also had taken to prayer. He prayed that the nightmare would end, he prayed for peace and quiet but mostly, he prayed for a cure. A cure to the disease that he carried for, if he was burdened for any longer, he was worried he would break. Mentally and physically.

Today was a horizon day, he wasn't up for the disappointment of fruitless prayer (he was beginning to not believe in God again.) Normally, while in his near meditative sate, he would be completely unaware of his surroundings but today, something felt wrong.

His first clue to this, The mysterious African American man sitting of a bench about twenty feet away. The man was bald, well built and wearing shaded glasses. Bruce thought he recognized him but gave the man less than a seconds thought. This was because his mind was now occupied with the idea that he was about to die for a red dot had suddenly appeared on his chest.

"Just a precaution Dr Banner," Said a deep and commanding voice behind him, the African American man.

Bruce scoffed, "A precaution, ha. More like foresight," the homeless scientist said before turning around, "I know how SHIELD operates General Fury."

Fury took in Bruce Banner. He was average height and weight, with long, scraggly brown hair and a long brown beard that hadn't been tended too in years. "You're perceptive there doctor," Fury chuckled, "Not many people would've noticed me."

Bruce frowned, "I learnt to check my surroundings and never be so stupid as to think that I'm safe…Thanks to you!" Bruce accused Fury, his voice beginning to get angry.

Fury backed up a step and reached for his waist, "As much as some people would like to see you get angry Dr Banner, I'm here on a diplomatic mission…well…Its more of a recruitment mission. You see, I have this idea for a team of people with extraordinary abilities…Much like yours."

Bruce Banner stared at Fury for a second before turning around and storming off, "Not in a million years!"

Fury pulled out a small remote and pressed a button. A sudden flash of silver streaked across the sky and hit Bruce Banner in the back.

The man slumped to the ground and began writing. People were staring shocked and pointing, some taking photos and videos.

Banner turned to Fury and growled, "Damn it Fury, you are the biggest fuhhhhh…"

Banner's eyes began to glow green but stopped just as quickly, "What?..." Banner stood up and staggered all over the place. "What did you do me?" The scientist asked.

Fury smirked as Banner used a railing for support, "We hit you with a heavy sedative, which means that I can do this without having to worry."

Fury then whipped out a gun of some sort and shot Bruce Banner twice in the stomach.

* * *

**THE INCREDIBLE HULK**

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**Washington DC. **

**Two Days Later**

Bruce Banner woke on a hospital bed. He was connected to many different machines that recorded various statistics but the machine he found most noticeable was the one labeled ST012 (Sedation Test 012-which was an attempted cure for Bruce's problem).

Bruce propped himself up on his elbows and gazed around the room, he noticed a large pane of one way glass and snorted, "Typical," He thought.

Bruce began to try to stand up and was met with the door to the room busting open and about four doctors and three guards running in and yelling at him. Bruce smirked and laid his head back down, SHIELD was very predictable.

Nick Fury walked in next and stood in front of Bruce. "Stand down men," Fury commanded.

The guards and doctors slowly lowered whatever kind of weapon they carried and slinked away as Nick Fury sat down next to Banner in a chair.

"You know, for a man who just shot me off of the side of a mountain you sure are playing the peaceful man well." Banner observed.

Fury smiled, "Oh that. That was more of releasing frustration then actually wanting to hurt you and all I hit you with was an electrical current that would render you unconscious for a couple of days but that is not why you're here."

Banner looked at Fury curiously, "Why am I here?"

"I would like to once again offer you a place on my team, we have our first mission in a couple of days and I need someone with your firepower to help us."

"Who is us?"

Fury nodded towards the glass and a couple of seconds later four people walked through the door.

The first was a woman with long red hair, medium height and lean and wearing a black get up that Banner thought looked like it was made from some kind of nano-tech suit that would mould to the wearer's body, but science aside, it did not leave much to the imagination.

Next was another woman, this one had long black hair and fair skin. She was wearing a red, yellow and black costume with a half face mask. She was currently also holding a gun at her side.

The third person was a man, or more accurately a boy, who was wearing normal and casual clothes. He also held a staff in one hand.

The final person was also male, but this time a man. He was a in a big silver helmet that had some kind of voice modifier in front of his mouth. His super-hero suit was definitely made from some form of unstable molecules which would change themselves to help combat any environment or transformation. The coloring was all red save for the feet which were black and circuit of black lines covering his body.

Fury introduced the four to Banner in the order that they walked in, "These are the four other team members; The Black Widow, Spider-Woman, Amadeus Cho and Ant-man or, as you will get to know them, "Natasha Romanov, Jessica Drew and Hank Pym."

Banner looked the team up and down before turning to Fury, "And why should I join you?" He asked skeptically.

Fury pulled out a folder from under his black trench coat, "We have a problem developing that could endanger the future," Fury handed Banner the folder.

Banner opened it up and saw a picture of a man in a military uniform. The photo appeared to have been taken quite a while ago and there was a newer one under it. This photo was slightly blurry and had been taken in action, it showed a man in a bullet proof vest with his arms exposed, he was holding a gun and he wore a mask with some kind white marking on it. "Brock Rumlow a.k.a Crossbones. A super mercenary who is a known affiliate with HYDRA. This man was seen just two days ago in Washington and a decoded message has led us to believe that he will present at the president's address of the situation in Afghaistan. We don't want him to complete anything!" Fury informed Banner.

Bruce scoffed, "And why do you need a whole team to take out one man?"

Fury then pulled out a piece of paper with a message written down on it. The paper read, "Send squad 12."

"Squad 12 is an elite HYDRA team of 50 soldiers who are going to gate crash the party tomorrow.

" Banner looked over all of his information and make a decision that he hoped he wouldn't regret, "Okay, you have my help. But not his!" Banner said, referring to his other half.

Fury just smiled.

**The Next Day. **

**White House Lawns. **

**Washington DC**

The five squad members stood on the lawn of the White House in civilian clothing and surveyed the area. There was easily 200 people already here and a promise of more to come. "Does anyone else feel like we've walked into haystack, trying to find a needle," Henry said.

Banner agreed, "Luckily, that needle has a thermal body signature that I can track down. I need Jessica and Natasha to get the equipment in place and Hank and Amadeus to help me get the computer set up."

Everyone nodded and ran off to get their respective jobs done.

Banner grabbed a handful of wires and began plugging them into all the cameras in the area. Making sure that every single inch of the grounds was covered in footage. Once this was done, Banner ran off to turn the computer on and catch their assassin.

**Behind the Stage**

A group of soldiers wearing futuristic armor that covered their torso and face stood behind the stage, waiting for the moment when they would be revealed to the world.

One man who looked particularly excited leaned over to the soldier next to him, "Just think, we're going to be the first super soldiers since Captain America." The man said quickly, so excited he was speaking faster than a bullet.

The other soldier leaned back over, "Not exactly, Germany made a few super soldiers back in the 50's."

The first soldier seemed surprised, "You know your stuff. By the way, I'm Robert Reynolds." Robert said, extending his hand.

The other soldier took the handshake up and introduced himself, "Brock Rumlow."

**5 Minutes Later. **

**The Podium**

President Ellis walked onto the stage and, despite the amount of people in the crowd, looked straight towards the podium, creating a sense of seriousness that lowered the volume of every person's voice immediately.

"Listen folks, what I'm about say could be sugar coated in every which way and while some may believe that that is the best way to address this problem, I'm gonna give it to you straight… We have a major crisis on our hands. The war situation has become dire and we need a way to stop this. We are desperate to save lives and we need to do this quickly and efficiently. But we have found a solution and we're here to show you the solution to our problem. Please welcome to the stage the Secretary of Defense, Dell Rusk."

**Back on the Lawns**

Bruce Banner watched the 12 different screens in front of him, trying to find the assassin that brought this team together with little success.

For one, the man was trained to be among the most dangerous people on Earth and two, well, Banner never got to two because then 50 HYDRA soldiers dropped from the sky and held everyone hostage with automatic rifles.

"WE NEED THOSE SOLDIERS ACTIVE!" Yelled some army official.

Dell Rusk began commanding them out on his walkie talkie but what he saw was a shocking sight, out of the stage walked one Brock Rumlow, guns in hand and a room full of bodies and blood behind him. Brock walked over to Rusk and threw him off the stage then grabbed the microphone, "Hail HYDRA." He said before he shot the president.

"Shit," Banner muttered under his breath, "Guys, screw the plans, start taking the men out!" Banner said over his communication device.

"_Copy that_," responded Jessica Drew and the others but she continued, "_Banner, if those rumors about you are completely true we could use your special ability_."

"No, I'm not doing that, I can't." Banner said and then turned his walkie-talkie off.

Meanwhile, Hank Pym and Amadeus Cho were focused on the pulley system behind the stage. They figured if they could reach it and lower Hank down in a non suspicious way then they could get Brock distracted. Only problem, and one soon to be solved, was how Hank was getting there.

"Wait, I can figure this out. I just need something to launch you off," Amadeus told Pym.

Hank pulled up a wooden board and a couple of sand bags (they were on the side of the stage), "Will this do?" He asked.

Amadeus nodded and then got to work. He arranged the bags with precision, his mind working out the force and trajectory needed for each position he tried perfectly until he found the right spot, "Okay Hank, hop on." He exclaimed.

Hank shrunk down to Ant-Man size jumped on the wood. He then waited and saw Amadeus step on the other side of the plank and he was thrown forward. He heard Cho instruct him to hold his right arm out and he was glad he did because when he reached the pulley his right hand clasped on and he swung around it, ending up facing outwards and towards Rumlow.

Hank then began lowering himself towards the ground slowly, hoping that when the time came for action, the team would be ready.

He was powerless. There was nothing Bruce could do to stop this…well…there was one way but Bruce wouldn't even entertain the idea. Bruce continued fiddling with his machines, trying to remove the idea of a certain course of action.

"_Bruce, Pym and I are about to smack down Rumlow_!" Cho reported over the communication devices.

Bruce scrambled for his own device worriedly, "NO! Cho, abort the mission, Rumlow is one of the best soldiers on Earth, we need to take him out. All of us. Together!" Bruce replied but as he looked to the stage, Bruce Banner knew he was too late.

Henry seemed to appear out of nowhere, falling towards Rumlow with a fist outstretched. Pym landed a blow and stood up to face Rumlow in a fighting position. However, as Henry charged, Rumlow pulled out a gun and shot him twice in the abdomen. Henry slumped onto the ground, losing blood fast.

"NO!" Banner shouted.

Rumlow heard all of this and then gave the damning order, "Kill some hostages." He commanded confidently.

A barrage of bullets was fired and the sound of screams echoed through everyone but none as hard as Bruce. He felt numb, he hadn't been able to think fast enough. He was sad and broken and…angry. Bruce was becoming madder and madder at Rumlow.

He arched his back and cried out in pain as fire ran through his veins. His body started to grow, his muscles bulging. Bruce's shirt ripped to reveal dark green skin that kept growing and his glasses fell off as bright green eyes reveled themselves.

"ARRRRGHH!" Bruce screamed as the transformed continued, but as he became closer to his other self his scream became more of a roar.

"**RAAAAARGHHH**!" The other self, better known as the Hulk, roared.

The Hulk stood up, revealing his position to all of the people. He was a massive beast, towering over everyone. His skin was a dark green and his muscles were extremely oversized. He was wearing what remained of Bruce's top and purple pants that Bruce always wore in case of an…incident. He had a shaggy head of dark green almost black hair which made his vibrant green eyes stand out even more.

The Hulk grunted and puffed at the man who was the source of his rage, "**HULK SMASH SKELETON MAN**!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Skeleton man, or Crossbones, stared at the beast before giving another command, "Kill the Hulk."

Guns fired and bullets flew but the Hulk just ran through them, his incredibly thick hide stopping the bullets before they could hurt him, they felt like little sugar ant bites.

The Hulk jumped at a group of soldiers who all stood in shock before a giant hand swatted them to the side, each man dying upon impact. He then attacked the next group who ducked and rolled for a bit but one by one they all were destroyed by a large green fist. The Hulk was beginning to slow down as the bullets took their toll, but he continually got angrier and madder and just kept pushing. He jumped at one group knocked all back with his landing then leapt to a lone gunman, grabbed him and flung him into a wall. With just 14 men left, HYDRA's mission was beginning to fail.

Crossbones then began to approach his opponent, pulling out an automatic rifle. He shot a clip at the Hulk but only achieved the green behemoth's attention. Both enemies charged at each other and the Hulk swung his fist but Crossbones slid under his legs and threw a grenade at his face.

BOOM!

The explosion rocked the Hulk a couple of feet but he shook it off and engaged his opponent.

Black Widow, Spider-woman and Amadeus Cho were taking on the last 14 soldiers. The three were highly capable fighters and were steadily stopping the enemy. As the last man fell, they stopped and watched their jolly green ally trying to annihilate Crossbones.

"Fury didn't lie. He gets angry real good!" Spiderwoman mused.

"Yes, now let's free the hostages." Widow instructed tensely. The trio went about gathering hostages and setting them towards the nearest exit as the Hulk continued his rampage.

"I was promised a challenge, not some green monster." Crossbones said as he shot the Hulk again after dodging an attack.

The Hulk just roared and kept swinging. He missed his first two punches but the third clipped Crossbones and the mercenary went flying. He felt a couple of bones snap but got up and was unfortunately greeted with a giant hand clasping his head. Hulk then swung his arm back and slammed Crossbones into the ground before throwing him miles away from the lawn.

Hulk then turned and saw some men in military uniforms stirring and growled before stomping over to them. He raised a fist but was stopped by a small voice. "Mr Hulk." She said, the Hulk turned, it was a little girl who was just escaping but was stopped. "Thank you, you're a really good hero." She said and then ran off.

The Hulk smiled before slowly reverting back to Banner. The small scientist stood still in his spot before surveying the carnage around him then looking at himself. He sighed and looked at his teammates who just stared at him.

"Well Dr Banner, do you have any words to describe that?" Widow asked. "

Nope," Bruce replied, then he looked at the very baggy pants he was holding up, "But does anyone know where I can get some new pants."

**Epilogue 1 **

**Being a Hero**

Nick Fury stood on the curb with Banner. They were waiting for the Doctor's ride and talking about the Hulk's activities in DC.

"Sure I can't convince you to stay?" Fury asked.

Bruce looked away, "Nope, I don't think I can work for SHIELD. Too high a risk of you know who emerging inappropriately." Bruce replied.

Fury nodded, "Just remember, SHIELD now considers you and the Hulk allies." Fury informed Banner.

Bruce frowned, "I appreciate the idea, but me and the Other Guy remember it was your team who caused this, then restrained us and then hunted us for six years." He said.

Fury also frowned, "That was not completely my idea, there were other forces at work then." He stated.

Bruce continued his frown, but this time in thought, "Any idea who?"

"No clue. There are some things even the SHIELD isn't allowed to know."

Banner laughed, "Even the master spy isn't in on all the knowledge." He joked.

Fury however did not laugh but noticed Banner's car, or rather motorbike, arrive, "Looks like you're off," he announced, "I hope one day you'll reconsider, both of you are pretty useful."

"I don't think I'm fit for the Secret Warriors."

"I have other ideas, some off the books."

"Sorry Fury, but I'll still decline," Banner concluded, walking over to the bike, "However, from the fragments of memory I have of being the Hulk, he enjoyed being a hero…and so did I."

Then Banner was off, once again disappearing from the public eye for who knows how long.

**Epilogue 2 **

**The Other Forces**

General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross stared at the screen in front of him. The man on it was dressed in yellow protective gear that looked like something a bee keeper would wear. The man and Ross were discussing the Hulk and what to do, or more precisely, what the man in yellow wouldn't do.

"He's a monster and we need to remove him from the world." Ross said angrily but the man was having none of it.

"_General Ross, we've been chasing the Hulk for six years now and not once have we succeeded, unfortunately we here at A.I.M have come to find this project a pointless waste of our time, money and resources_." The man informed Ross.

"NO! We just need some more gear and my Hulkbusters can bring him in." Ross argued.

"_We're very sorry, this was a promising endeavor but it is no longer worth our attention._" The man continued.

"Don't do this, you're letting the millions of people die…" Ross accused but was cut off.

"_Goodbye General_." The Man concluded and the screen switched off.

Ross slammed a fist on his desk and held his head in despair, he was losing everything. No more funding, SHIELD had turned their back on him, his daughter, Betty, hadn't spoken to since he started hunting the Hulk/Bruce Banner who had been her boyfriend and now AIM were giving him a massive red light. There wasn't many options left.

Ross picked up the phone and dialed a number then waited for the answer.

"_Yes General_?" The voice said.

"It's time, we need to fight fire with fire." Ross responded.

"_Agreed. So General Ross, who do you want to make a Hulk_?"

**Epilogue 3 **

**Whatever Happened with Crossbones?**

Crossbones stood in the office of his boss. His boss was staring out of the window at New York and all of its people, he tended to do that a lot and it was a usual occurrence to talk to only 50% of his focus.

"What do you have for me?" The man asked.

"We failed as you saw but we can assemble more teams." Crossbones said.

"Do not bother. We have missed our chance now but we still can take something away from this battle." The man replied.

"What could possibly have been positive about that?" Crossbones asked incredulously.

"Well, we now know what lengths Nick Fury will go to and we now know that that the Hulk is an active player." The man informed Crossbones.

Crossbones nodded, "So what are my next orders?"

"Nothing, we continue building our group. We have the money and the time so we will do the job right." The boss said.

Crossbones nodded again.

"Then it is settled," the boss said.

He turned around to Crossbones and revealed the face of Dell Rusk but this was not the most surprising part for he then tore away at the mask that Dell Rusk's face and revealed the blood colored visage of the Red Skull.

"One day we will have the world at our fingertips. One day, I will reign supreme. Hail HYDRA!" The Red Skull said and saluted Crossbones.

"Hail HYDRA!" Crossbones saluted back.

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**A.N**

**Hey Guys, hope you enjoyed Tales To Astonish #1. This book will primarily follow the adventures of Avengers in their solo time. Of course, others will feature and Avengers characters will get solo books but this is for stories that don't need a whole book.**

**The Hulk I included because I wanted more than just the Avengers book (which is currently in the works) as an introduction.**

**As for other inclusions, we see Black Widow and Spider-Woman (both after their evil days) the Original Ant-Man (oh no! Who could we get to replace him?) and Amadeus Cho (He is really smart). Plus we see SHIELD looking to make a superhero team and who knows, maybe we'll se more of the Secret Warriors. Finally, what team could Nick Fury possibly mean by an off the books, non secret hero team?**

**Anyway, if you have read my Amazing Spiderman story you'll know that the Red Skull is a major player in this universe and that he is making startling advancements in his chosen area of work.**

**Also, please go check out Secret Avengers, my title for the Marvel NEW! FanFiction site I'm running. Then go check the site and send in a submission if you want to write a title there.**

**Thanks for reading and please review**.

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_Issue #2_: Midgard is threatened by a group of ancient creatures known as the Dark Elves. Who could possibly save us? Enter the God of Thunder Zues...wait...sorry...THOR!


	2. Issue 2: Thor and Iron Man

**Cover 1: Thor holding Mjolnir to the sky while summoning lightning**

**Iron Man Variant: Tony Stark holding the Iron Man helmet in the middle of a destroyed New York City. **

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**Marvel11611  
Presents  
Before Avengers**

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**Story 1**  
**Ancient Darkness**

**345 BCE  
Where New York Will One Day Stand**

If anyone had been present they would have sworn that they were no longer of a sound mind. Out of the sky came a flash of light and on it, walking down the light like it was a bridge, was a tall, pale white figure. His hair that was even whiter fell down to his shoulders. Behind him was a large, green creature with razor sharp teeth and yellow eyes. In the creatures hand was a box, a small wooden casket with carvings of an ancient language on it.  
The first creature, an elf named Malekith, turned to the green beast, Jagrfelm, "What is this object Jagrfelm?" Malekith asked coldly.  
"The Casket of Ancient Winters," Presented Jagrfelm, "Capable of calling killing winters to its mouth and releasing them across a world." The creature explained, proud to be its owner.  
"Well Jagrfelm, show me this Casket's power." Malekith ordered.  
Jagrfelm opened the casket slowly and out spewed a terrible wind, shards of ice and a freezing snow that left the surrounding ten miles in a deep freeze.  
Malekith chuckled, "I shall be a powerful king with this weapon by my side. Many thanks Jagrfelm." The Elf applauded.  
Jagrfelm faltered, "You misunderstand Malekith. The Casket is not yours, it is for me." He informed Malekith.  
Malekith frowned, "That is a tragedy, you misunderstand, for I am not asking for the casket," Malekith muttered an enchantment under his breath and a knife appeared in his hand. Using the knife quickly Malekith stabbed Jagrfelm through the heart, "I am taking it."  
SKRAKATHOOM!  
Thunder shook the sky and rain began to fall. Bright and hot lightning flashed all around Malekith and the Elf smirked, "Ahhh, So the Thunder God has finally found me. A challenge worthy of Malekith I would think." The Elf said to himself.  
A rainbow path appeared from the sky and flying down it came Thor, God of War and Thunder, Prince of Asgard and current enemy of Malekith, wizard of black magic and leader of the Dark Elves.  
"Thunderer! You could not have shown at a better time." The Dark Elf called.  
Thor stayed silent on his approach but the Elf continued, "Today, I Malekith, Ruler of the Dark Elves will slay the Great and Mighty Thor!" He proclaimed.  
Thor remained on his path, his weapon Mjolnir, an enchanted hammer, outstretched before him, "Malekith!" He roared before hitting the evil king.  
Malekith erected a quick shield that helped stop part of the blow but he was still thrown back a fair way. The Dark Elf tumbled across the ground. His clothes were shredded and his skin cut.  
Thor came to stop and landed on the ground before finishing his earlier thought, "I say thee nay."  
Malekith chuckled, "You know not, great Thor, that I now possess the Casket of Ancient Winters and shall put an end to you." He proclaimed before completely opening the Casket and releasing the power it held.  
The blizzard hit Thor and pushed him backwards with its force. The God fell to one knee but inched forward, never giving in. With a large push of effort Thor regained his footing and began whirling Mjolnir around in large circles. Lightning formed around the hammer before Thor threw it at Malekith with all his might.  
The Dark Elf shut the Casket quickly to try and make a shield but was too late. Lightning crackled through his body, scaring half of his face, half of his torso and his right leg. That was when Mjolnir hit him. The Hammer threw Malekith right to the edge of the land. Stormy seas raged behind him and granules of sand sped past him, digging into his face.  
Thor quickly landed next to the Dark Elf, "You shall pay for your crimes Malekith!" The God said.  
Thor then opened the Casket of Ancient Winters and turned it on Malekith. The Dark Elf was frozen in an instant. Thor grabbed his frozen body and flew off to the ocean near the North Pole where he dropped Malekith.  
The Dark Elf sunk to the bottom where he would stay in icy imprisonment.

**Almost 2000 Years Later  
Arctic Ocean**

It had been nearly two millennia since anyone had stared at the face of Malekith the Accursed but here they were, two scientists who had just discovered a comatose God, staring at him while he lay frozen in animated suspension.  
"The Scientist Supreme will be happy about this," One of them exclaimed.  
"Yes, this will certainly contribute to our work. Imagine, if we gave MODOC the ability to survive in extreme environments for extended periods of time. Imagine what we could achieve." The second replied.  
The first just imagined. They could journey to incredible depths of fly all the way to space. A power like this would truly revolutionize science.  
However it would not today as Malekith had woken up. With supernatural speed the old king of the Dark Elves was standing and one of the scientists was on the ground. The other was cowering in fear in the corner of the AIM craft.  
"Wh…who are you?" The scientist whimpered in a way that angered the tough he was so cowardly.  
"I am Malekith, King of the Dark Elves and the most powerful wizard in all of the nine realms. Is this what the race of Midgard is now? A whimpering baby who cannot even look at true power. Bah! I will have fun with your people." Malekith replied.  
He then muttered an enchantment and was teleported away in a flash of light. Neither of the scientists would ever be able to report it however as Malekith's spell had also incinerated their bodies out of existence.

**New York Shore**

Malekith could feel it beneath him. There was a chill in the ground that was not natural. It was too complex for a human to feel it but it was there. The remnants of a fierce winter and far below it, the Casket of Ancient Winters.  
"It is your turn to pay for past sins Thor," Malekith exclaimed before thrusting his hand towards the ground.  
There was an Earth shattering rumble as the rock below began to crack. The ground in New York shook with the force of a small earthquake and coupled with dark red light Malekith was conjuring, civilians thought that some form of volcanic eruption was taking place. The complete opposite was to happen as Malekith finally procured his prize, The Casket.  
"Let Thor come to fight. Let him come to die!" Malekith cackled evilly as he opened the Casket and unleashed a millennium worth of fierce winters onto New York City.

* * *

The people of New York City began to panic as a cyclone of snow and ice descended upon them. The blizzard Malekith was creating had already covered 10 blocks of New York City and threatened to cover the whole 5 boroughs in roughly an hour. SHIELD had mobilized but were being buffeted away by the intense power of the storm. A few people would claim that they had seen the red and blue vigilante Spiderman swinging to the scene but no-one was sure what was real anymore.  
There was no discussing however, the thunder and lightning in the sky. Most would attribute it with the freak weather storm but one being in New York knew exactly what it meant. Malekith knew that he had caught Thor's attention.  
"So it begins," Malekith uttered, his hands waving in a mystical fashion. A portal opened behind him and an ebony sword appeared in the Dark Elf's hand. He saw a blur of red with lighting crackling around him. A boom of thunder was heard and Thor quickly approached.  
"SO IT ENDS!" Malekith screamed maniacally as he raised his sword and swung it at Thor. The Thunder God made to dodge but was going fast and felt the blade pass through his shoulder. A pain like no other washed through him as he slammed into the icy streets and finally came to rest in a building lobby, having smashed through its entrance.  
Thor didn't stay down though. His warrior spirit pushed him back up and charged back to Malekith. The Dark Elf just chuckled and waved his hand and a large yeti rose from the ground and ran to Thor.  
The large beast swung his fists at the God but every punch was dodged. Thor swung his hammer upwards and pummeled the monster's chin. The Yeti stumbled back but kept its feet and roared at Thor in anger.  
Thor roared back at the monster and threw Mjolnir at it. The hammer flew straight through the Yeti's chest and returned low to knock its feet out. The beast dropped dead to the ground as Mjolnir returned to Thor.  
Thor then flew up above the beast and stared Malekith down with a glare that would turn the Hulk to Banner. Malekith stared in momentary shock. That was not a random beast conjured from nowhere, that beast had been summoned by Malekith in hundreds of battles and had never once fallen.  
Malekith's shock wore off and he conjured up another sword, "To the death!" He proclaimed and raised his twin blades.  
Thor, ever the warrior, nodded in silent agreement and began whirling Mjolnir in circles. As the hammer flew about more it charged with lightning before the Thunder God released it. The hammer was slung straight at Malekith but, unlike his furry beast, he dodged it and dodged again as it whipped past him on it its way to Thor.  
Thor caught Mjolnir and leaped at Malekith. He swung his hammer but Malekith blocked with one sword and swiped at Thor's legs with his other sword. Thor jumped back and in his moment of unbalanced landing Malekith knocked him to the ground with the hilt of his sword.  
"You are losing, Thunder God. Please, beg for your mercy. I would thoroughly enjoy that." Malekith cackled.  
Thor growled through a response of, "Never!" Before kicking Malekith's knee with all of his might.  
A sickening crack sounded as the bone snapped under the force of Thor's foot and Malekith stumbled onto the ground.  
Thor stood up and grabbed Malekith by the shirt. In a fit of rage the Thunderer threw the Dark Elf into the side of a building and through the other side where Malekith lay unconscious and beaten into submission.  
Thor turned his back however and walked over to the Casket, now lying on the ground. He closed the lid and grabbed the small wooden box before approaching Malekith.  
"You wished to die villain," Thor muttered, "So be it."  
Thor then raised his hammer and lightning crackled to life. In one swipe downwards a large blue bolt of the electricity came struck Malekith's heart, stopping it instantly and frying his body.

**2 Hours Later**

The winter was over. Mild sun shone onto the buildings and streets and all snow and ice had retreated into the Casket. Thor sat quietly atop a building, overlooking New York in deep thought.  
Thwip!  
A skinny man in red and blue landed next to Thor. He was Spiderman and neither hero knew each other. They sat in silence for a minute before it was broken.  
"So…Do you have a name or should I just refer to you by some random name?" Spiderman asked.  
Thor continued his staring but answered the question, "I am Thor, God of Thunder and Prince of Asgard. Who might you be?" He turned his head as he asked his own question.  
Spiderman frowned, "Huh, I had you pegged as a Jake for some reason. Anyway, I'm Spiderman. Newest hero in the state." He replied, extending a hand towards Thor.  
Thor took his hand and shook it, "Any man who protects his people is an ally of mine."  
Spiderman broke the shake and continued on, "Yeaaahh, not really _my _people. We frown on that these days. Anyway, you staying here? We don't have many protectors in New York. There's me and I've heard rumors of a Devil in Hells Kitchen who helps those in need…ummmm…who else…OH!... There's Iron Man but he just protects Stark Tower from corporate super threats."  
"I don't believe I can leave now. After seeing how easily Malekith threatened you I feel as though I have a duty to stay and protect."  
"Good. I'm glad we have more heroes. It seems we need them these days. Lots of threats emerging and not enough people who can stop them. See ya' round Thor." Spiderman said before jumping off of the building.  
Thor watched as he sung away on web ropes and frowned. He had meant what he had said about staying and his worry with Malekith. Midgard threats had never been mixed with those of the other nine realms. They had always stayed out of the battle but now, if they were to be dragged in, they needed a herald who would guide them in the coming days. Thor stood up. He would be that warrior, he would guide Midgard to days of glory and victory.

**Epilogue  
Fury's Second Consultation**

Nick Fury stood outside a revolving door in Manhattan. It had been a week since the Winter Attack as it was called and New York had become a somewhat different place. Reports of a yeti, two gods and the Spiderman had whipped New York into a state of panic. The world was changing but the world wasn't ready for it.  
Snapped back to the reality by the entrance of the man Fury was meeting. He wasn't tall but his features stood out, brilliant blue eyes and golden hair. His body was fit but certainly not superhuman. His name, Jake Olson but he would become better known as Thor.  
"General Fury, it's good to see you again," he exclaimed, sounding much more laid back in his vocabulary than Thor did.  
"Good to see you too Thor, glad you're fighting with us now." Fury said but he meant more than Thor beginning a heroic career.  
"What happened in your World War 2 was unfortunate but Hitler and Schmidt clouded my judgment. That has been and now the times have changed. In fact I stopped an armed robbery yesterday." Thor replied.  
Fury started walking and motioned for Jake to join him, "About that. I have a project, a fail safe for a rainy day. I call it the Avengers Protocol. I want Thor on the team." Fury explained.  
"Straight to the point as always General," Jake laughed, "I would be honored to join you should a time like that come."  
Fury extended his hand, "Welcome to the hero business then." He said.  
Jake took his hand but the shake was cut short by sirens in the distance. Jake quickly walked off to an empty alley and a boom was heard. Seconds later, Thor was zooming off into the sky towards the crime scene.  
Fury stood for a second and watched before walking off. The Avengers would be needed sooner rather than later.

**Story 2  
Future Fate  
**

**New York, Over Times Square****  
**

The armored hero known as Iron Man soared above the ground, dodging and weaving as blasts of energy flew at him. They all missed Iron Man but they posed a serious threat to bystanders down below. Iron Man had to stop this drone.  
"Okay, enough of this crap! Time to see how you hold up against some Iron-Brand malware." Iron Man called out as he dodged the last blast.  
Iron Man commanded his armor to fire the malware at the drone. A small projectile embedded itself in the enemy robot's head and immediately set to work. The drone seized up for a second before falling to the ground.  
"How's that for advanced tech!" Iron Man gloated.  
BOOM!  
The drone exploded in a massive fireball that wiped out a fair chunk of Times Square, "NO!" Iron Man screamed as the shrieks of hundreds were drowned out by the detonation.  
Iron Man watched as the carnage unfolded. The smoke was beginning to clear and already he could see cars on fire, buildings shattered and people lying dead on the ground. What had begun as a mission Iron Man had thought he could handle on his own had ended with a New York tragedy.  
"_Tony Stark,_" a mechanized voice from behind called. Tony turned to see another robot approaching. This one was much bigger and had a head vaguely resembling that of a human ant. It's mouth was opened and filled with red energy.  
"_They call you one of the smartest men alive. You have proven yourself quite the opposite._" The robot said.  
"Who…" Tony growled in barely contained rage.  
"_I am Ultron 5. I am the savior of Earth!_" Ultron declared.  
"Savior? You just killed hundreds of people!" Tony screamed.  
"_Humans are the reason Earth is in this state and your accusation is incorrect. There were many ways for you to stop my drone rather than the deadly virus you uploaded._" Ultron explained.  
"I'm going to tear you apart!" Tony threatened.  
Ultron now took action. He swiftly flew over to Tony and grabbed his arm before flinging him down through a building below. Tony hurtled through 12 floors before coming to a rest in his very own crater in the lobby. The armored hero groaned as his armor, torn and broken, turned off. Ultron flew down and tore off the face mask of Iron Man.  
"_Again you are incorrect. You will be dead long before you would be advanced enough to stop me._" Ultron said as fired a laser straight between Tony's eyes.

**Night Time, The Real World**

Tony's eyes snapped open as he awoke from his dream. His breathing was loud and fast and sweat was pouring off of him, matting his black hair and goatee. That had been the third of those dreams this week. In all of them there was a running theme, Tony helping to end the world.  
The first had seen a war that Tony started lead to the Red Skull, a World War Two villain, becoming president of the United States and unleashing the US Army on the planet. The second one had featured a time traveler by the name of Kang the Conqueror travelling back to 2016 to stop a team of heroes called the Avengers and Tony's actions had caused his ship to demolish most of Europe. The third had just happened with the robot name Ultron.  
"I think this past a coincidence now," Tony breathed as he grabbed a beer from his fridge.  
"It is far past a coincidence Mr. Stark," Confirmed a man from the shadows.  
Tony whirled around to see who it was. The man stepped into view. He was wearing long black and green robes. He had shoulder length black hair and a long beard of the same colour. On his fingers were 10 rings. Each glowed a different color.  
"How did you get in here? Stark Tower has the best security system on Earth. No tech can beat it." Tony questioned.  
The man just laughed, "That's your problem. There are more powerful things than technology Stark. However I am not here as an enemy. I am told that one day I will be but for now, we have a common goal. Saving our worlds." The man said.  
Tony thought through every possible question but he couldn't come up with much better than, "Who are you?"  
"You may call me the Mandarin. I'm sure you are wondering what I mean by saving our worlds. You see Stark, we both have a view on this world. Yours is of a world that has everything it needs. It is quite…naïve."  
Tony now saw that this conversation had two outcomes, one that scared him half to death and another that had him suiting up as Iron Man and fighting the Mandarin.  
"What are you talking about?" Tony asked.  
The Mandarin laughed again, but this time it was much more ominous, "You hero types see humanity like yourselves, willing to sacrifice your life for anything. The world is a selfish place Tony Stark. Most men these days would kill their own parents if it meant their own salvation."  
"What makes you so sure?"  
"I have seen it myself. An entire village in my country killed because it would make one man more powerful. You want to change the world. I want to change the people." The Mandarin informed Tony.  
"Ok then, have a good time." Tony said, not really seeing the point of this visit anymore.  
"Not without one proposition first. I need someone like Iron Man on my side, someone who can build almost anything. I need you to speed up the evolution of man Tony Stark…Will you?" The Mandarin asked.  
"You're asking me to build a machine that will evolve all of humanity." Tony summarized.  
"No, I want you to build a machine that will allow humans with the _potential _to evolve the chance they need."  
"What about those who don't have potential?" Tony asked warily.  
"They would die."  
Tony's mind was made up the moment Mandarin spoke that sentence. Tony turned back to the beer on his counter and secretly pressed a button underneath it that would summon his Iron Man armor. In half a minute he would blow this mad man to the other side of New York.  
"I don't know, mass genocide? Doesn't really sound like me." Tony stalled.  
The Mandarin, beginning to create a habit, laughed ominously, "Don't you get it yet Tony. I could've chosen any number of men who are just as smart as you but I didn't. Like I told you, those dreams were no coincidence. It's your destiny Tony, you were made to end the world."  
At this exact moment the Iron Man armor burst onto the scene and enveloped Tony, encasing him inside. It was a mechanical suit of armor with a gold face mask, red torso, feet and hands with yellow limbs. It was powered by the life support device in Tony's chest that glowed a bright yellow colour.  
"You have one minute to leave the building before I blast you straight to hell." Iron Man threatened.  
The Mandarin just smiled and activated his rings, teleporting away in flash of light with the parting words, "It is written in the stars Tony. One way or another, your actions will result in the apocalypse."  
Tony stood for a moment, weapons still at the ready and tried to process what had happened. At was at this point that Tony's butler and friend, Edwin Jarvis, walked in. He was roughly 50 years old and no way in the fighting shape that the butler of a superhero probably should be in.  
"Is something wrong sir? I heard a commotion." He said sleepily.  
Tony powered down the armor and stepped out of it. He grabbed his drink and flopped down on the couch, "Yeah, something's very wrong. Remind me to call Pepper tomorrow and get her to schedule a meeting with Nick Fury. All that's been going on lately, the water cone at OsCorp and that blizzard attack last week, I think it's time I accept his offer."

* * *

**So...I know that I promise just Thor but I couldn't wait any longer to write Avengers so I threw in an Iron Man story. That was pretty much what you were going to get in Tales To Astonish #3 but with an extra 1,500 words.  
****Anyway, wish I'd waited or glad I threw him in. I'll never know until you review, unless you favorite and follow. That would give me a pretty clear view on your stand on this story. So in short I want you to follow, favorite and review.  
****As always, I'll give you guys some thoughts on this chapter. I originally planned for the second story to feature the second incarnation of the Secret Warriors vs AIM vs Hydra as a way to introduce their own series but I decided that I would give Iron Man and Mandarin the spotlight. Ultron was just because I saw Age of Ultron and felt like I had to include him.  
****Iron Man's suit looks a lot like his Extremis Armor from the comics and Thor (as it now occurs to me that I didn't describe his outfit) looks much like he did in Avengers EMH Season 1.  
****Easter Eggs...Spiderman gave Thor the idea for the Jake Olson secret identity.  
The Devil of Hell's Kitchen was a quick nod to Daredevil on Netflix but Murdoch's vigilante persona exists and will be making his first appearance soon.  
Tony Stark's dreams may or may not be based on future story arcs.  
Finally, The Mandarin's prediction that Tony will be the end of the world, was that just the Mandarin messing with Tony or will he really end the world? Only time will tell. **

* * *

**Thor, Iron Man and the Hulk will return in 'The Avengers'  
**

* * *

**Next Chapter: The Big Man. A name that will soon be feared by all. Who can fight this crime lord? Only some of the world's next best heroes, who will only help you for a sizable fee. Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Misty Knight, Cloak and Dagger are the Heroes for Hire and they are here to help!**


End file.
